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Signing: Bryan Lee O’Malley at Isoptope today!

It’s been a busy two months over here at The Shared Universe. I went and started a new job, which is never good for extracurricular vanity project productivity. As a result, a number of signings and comic-focused events have fallen secondsthrough the cracks. One such event that has nearly fallen through the crack, but I’m snatching up at the last moment is today’s signing at Isotope: The Comic Book Lounge featuring Bryan Lee O’Malley. O’Malley, of Scott Pilgrim fame, dropped a new title yesterday called Seconds and he’ll be putting his autograph on it between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. You might want to get in line now. I would, but see the second sentence.

I lament my lateness in bringing this news, because there will also be an Isotope hoedown with O’Malley tonight after the store closes, but that event is full. Woe to the cocktail drinking comic fan short on low ball glasses. the-bryan-lee-omalley-cocktail-glass-mini

Have a sexy comic time at Bookish Beasts on July 13

Many comics fans like to think of our preferred medium as an insurgent to popular media, but in truth it’s in many ways nothing more than a leg of the same chair. In both comics and media as a whole violence has increasingly become an accepted form of “artistic” expression while the topic of sexuality is still relegated to the backrooms. There have been the hints of a possible sea change coming as publishers like Image and Oni challenge the status quo by not shying away from sexually provocative content while at the same time becoming the new standard-bearers of what mainstream companies should be adding to their superhero formulas. Still, there’s a thick jungle and our machetes are dull, so some of the most progressive and interesting stories addressing sexuality and gender are found at zine conventions, online, or often relegated to a comic book store’s “local creator” pander pile (“Do we carry local creators? Of course, just go dig through that unorganized pile in the very back of the store! We love local creators! Can we recommend one? No, but, um, hey, have you read Saga?“).

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If you live in the Bay Area finding comics about sexuality, gender, and erotica will be much easier on July 13. For the second year in a row San Francisco’s Center for Sex and Culture, 1349 Mission Street, will be hosting Bookish Beasts which is an effort to “expand the audiences of local zine and comic artists who make sexy books.” Over the last month CSC has been highlighting some of the publishers and artists who will be in attendance on their blog (warning: NSFW). Based on what’s highlighted in the posts it’s sure to be a provocative and fun event. It may even be the right level of smutty. More details:

Where: The Center for Sex and Culture at 1349 Mission Street
Date: July 13
Time: 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Price: Free!
Age: 18+

Read More »

AMC Metreon 16 is screening “Snowpiercer”

johnhurtI have a love/hate relationship with the Weinsteins. For all of the great film work they bring to the universe they also do a great deal of damage on the independent circuit. For some reason, going all the way back to the days of Miramax, they love to buy up the rights to Asian films and either sit on them or hack the shit out of them (earning the name Miramaxe). I recall 2003 being a rather spectacular year for the Weinsteins when they sat on Shaolin Soccer, Hero, and Infernal Affairs. All three films are now considered classics, but Asian film fans were chomping at the bit waiting for the movies to be released stateside.

I’d forgotten about this tendency until the current debacle with remnants of humanity on a train dystopian film Snowpiercer. For nearly a year now I’ve been waiting for the Weinsteins to trust the U.S. audience by releasing Snowpiercer. Much of the reason for the delay is due to typical Weinsteinian fiddling. They wanted to hack the film and make it easily digestible for a US audience and director Bong Joon-ho wasn’t having any of it. Neither side would flinch and the film has languished – until now.

My God, America, can you believe the Weinsteins are going to give you the benefit of the doubt that you might want to see an uncut foreign film? It’s true! Mostly. A tiny handful of theaters around the country are screening Snowpiercer. In San Francisco, the pleasure goes to AMC Metreon 16.

Snowpiercer is based on Jean-Marc Rochette’s graphic novel of the same name. The English translation of the graphic novels were released earlier this year by Titan.

Call to Action: San Jose’s Slave Labor Grahics needs support from the comic community

slggraphicSlave Labor Graphics is one of the longest running independent comic producers in the industry. Over the company’s nearly 30-year history the publisher has brought us uniquely quirky titles like Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, Milk & Cheese, Action Girl Comics, and many more. Now this classic company needs the help of what the crowdfunding-era has proven to be a very generous community. SLG Founder Dan Vado has published a plea on GoFundMe to help keep the company running. The company was foced to move locations recently and that has led to a financial downward spiral:

After running up our credit line during the move our bank decided to review our account and decided that the balance on the credit line was too high and, in their infinite wisdom, demanded immediate repayment in the form of a high-interest loan. This created a domino effect where, when reporting the change in my credit status to the various credit bureaus caused them all to cut my credit and in a couple of cases close my accounts.

Because of the nature of my businesses all of our debt was secured through personal guarantees and now I am in a spot where not only am I unable to get my business righted, but I have blown through all of my personal assets other than the home I live in to keep things going.

Even if you don’t have a single SLG title in your collection or on your bookshelf its worth supporting this effort. After you pledge consider swinging by your local comic book store and picking up something from the publisher.

Signing: Cruzader’s Omar Morales at Dr. Comics & Mr. Games on June 28

What’s better than a successful comic book Kickstarter campaign? A successful Kickstarter campaign that goes above and beyond the requested total.

cruzaderLast November, Omar Morales beat his goal to raise $10,000 so he could fulfill his dream of publishing his graphic novel CruZader: Agent of the Vatican. The local creator had already completed the 140-pages of story, but faced a funding challenge when it came time to publish and distribute his book. Kickstarter and nearly 100 backers helped him fulfill his dream and to celebrate he’ll be hosting a “Launch Signing” at Dr. Comics and Mr. Games, 4014 Piedmont Avenue in Oakland on June 28. At the signing you can pick up a copy of the hardcover edition of CruZader and have it signed by Morales.

What’s the book about? From the Kickstarter page:

A reluctant priest is re-trained as a holy warrior for the Pope; he must embrace his destiny in order to defend the Vatican from an invading army of radical terrorists … who are much more than what they appear.The story of CruZader is about one man’s journey to find a higher calling and a higher meaning in life. Our hero, Antonio De La Cruz, is a humble man with out any super powers. He wields ancient and supernatural relics in battle, and those artifacts give him the edge he needs to defeat his enemies. Some of his weapons and tools include: the legendary Spear of Christ, the Holy Grail, the Shroud of Turin, holy water, rosary beads, and a thorny cilice. Like most people, he has a hot and cold working relationship with his boss – none other than the Pope himself. De La Cruz tires of traveling the world hunting vampires, killing werewolves, and performing exorcisms. He seeks to retire from his duties as the Pope’s super soldier … until the day comes for him to fulfill his role in a mysterious prophecy.

You can see a video of Morales receiving his book here:

Listen to his interview with “I Sell Comics” below:

Tonight! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Ultimate Visual History Reception and Book Launch

tmnt11The Cartoon Art Museum, 655 Mission Street in San Francisco, will be celebrating 30 years of mutated turtles tonight with a reception for the venue’s current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles exhibition. This evening’s event will also act as a launch party for Cartoon Art Museum Curator Andrew Farago’s new book Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Ultimate Visual History. A long list of guests related to TMNT will be on hand this evening, including: “Turtles artists Mark Bode, Ken Mitchroney, longtime Mirage Studios staffer Molly Bode, IDW writer and editor Bobby Curnow, and Nickelodeon’s Ciro Nieli, Irineo Maramba, Felipe Smith, and Megan Casey.”

One of the highlights of this exhibition is the museum is showcasing all of the original art work from the very first TMNT issue by creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. The exhibit also includes cells from the original TMNT television series and art from recently published series.

The exhibit runs until September 14. Tonight’s reception is from 7 p.m. until 9 p.m.

SF Weekly is nothing but funny pages

I haven’t picked up a copy yet, but SF Weekly’s issue this week is mostly entirely comics. The weekly will be hosting a launch party this evening at 111 Minna from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. Admission is free, but $10 will get you three specialty cocktails and benefit our treasured Cartoon Art Museum.

If you want a taste of what to expect before you get ink on your fingers the paper has some of the cartoon articles (carticles?) on their website. For example: Sex Worker Super Powers.

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Reminder: First Annual Queer Comics Expo on Sunday at Cartoon Art Museum

QCElogoweb2-300x286Friendly reminder that tomorrow is the first annual Queer Comics Expo. The event takes place between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. and more information can be found at the Cartoon Art Museum’s website.

Banned Books Week to have focus on Comics

Comics have long been an easy target when it comes to panicked adults and headline craving politicians seeking an easy target for perceived moral corruption. The history of the censoring of comics, including the industry’s self-censoring of comics, is well known and documented. Not as well-documented is the sad fact that the practice of banning comics and graphic novels for often frivolous reasons continues today.

On Wednesday, the national Banned Books Week planning committee announced that one of the core themes of this year’s week long event will be a focus on graphic novels. The press release is below:

This year’s Banned Books Week, Sept. 21 – 27, will shine a light on this still misunderstood form of storytelling and will celebrate the value of graphic novels to readers from all walks of life through the work performed by Banned Books Week sponsors and individual librarians, retailers and readers from all over the world.

“This year we spotlight graphic novels because, despite their serious literary merit and popularity as a genre, they are often subject to censorship,” said Judith Platt, chair of the Banned Books Week National Committee.

Recently, the acclaimed memoir Fun Home by Alison Bechdel, has been the flashpoint in a university funding controversy in South Carolina, while last year Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi, faced an attempted ban in the Chicago Public Schools. Graphic novels continually show up on the American Library Association’s (ALA)  Top 10 list of Frequently Challenged Books. The ALA released its current list in April and includes Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants at the top spot and Jeff Smith’s series Bone arriving at #10.

Banned Books Week celebrates the Freedom to Read by encouraging readouts, displays, and community activities designed to raise awareness of the ongoing threats of censorship that continue to occur.

CBLDF.org offers a broad range of resources about banned and challenged comics, as well as tools that libraries, retailers and individuals can use to develop their own Banned Books Week celebrations. For an introduction to banned books and Banned Books Week, visit CBLDF’s FAQ: Banned Books Week 101.

Bannedbooksweek.org is a hub for information about how individuals and institutions can become involved in celebrating this important event. The website also includes resources and activities provided by event sponsors.

Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, American Library Association, American Society of Journalists and Authors, Association of American Publishers, Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, Freedom to Read Foundation, National Association of College Stores, National Coalition Against Censorship, National Council of Teachers of English, PEN American Center, and Project Censored.

Madefire will bring motion book format to Archie, Clive Barker, and others

madefire-logoMadefire has added four new partners to a growing list of independent publishers signing on with the company to create digital motion comics. This week the Berkeley-based start-up announced partnerships Archie Comics, Lion Forge, Arcana, and Clive Barker’s Seraphim.

Author Clive Barker said in a statement, “Never before have I seen anything like this. Madefire, has created a radical way in which to read comics and I’m excited beyond words to be a part of the revolution.”

As Publisher Weekly notes, the addition of Barker’s name to the roster is perhaps one of the more significant additions in terms of potential innovation. The horror and fantasy author brings a unique perspective to motion comics through his lifelong commitment to both cinematic and comic format storytelling. Madefire will be publishing motion comics of his infamous Books of Blood series as well as original material.

The company launched in June of 2012 with a Madefire specific title created by Dave Gibbons called Treatment. Since then the company has built momentum by establishing partnerships with mostly independent publishers, including IDW and Top Cow. Late last year, DC stuck it’s pinky toe into the motion comics pond by releasing the digital first title Injustice: Gods Among Us on the Madefire platform.

Related Links:
Berkeley’s Madefire adds Hellboy to motion comic line-up
Berkeley’s Madefire releases IDW motion books